Refrigeration apparatus



Aug. 26, 1 941.

E. E. GROVER REFRIGERATION PPARATUS Filed Jan. 1o, 19s9 2 She ets-Sheet1 Vm mm QN mm N? W mm INVENTOR Eamon E, GROVER BY Y ATI'ORNF/OWITNESSES:

'E. E. GROVER REFRIGERATION APPARATUS Filed Jain. 10, .1939 -2Sheets-Sheet; 2

7 E gunman Fre--4 a v F1e e V INVENTOR WITNESSES-:7

a. w. by

-E|=u1,o'r'r E- GRoy ATTORNEY Patented Aug. 26, 1941 REFRIGERATIONAPPABATU S Elliott E. Grover, Springfield, Mass., 'asslgnor to.Westinghouse Electric 8; Manufacturing Company, East Pittsburgh,"Pa., acorporatlonof Pennsylvania 8 Claims.

This invention relates to refrigeration appara tus and more particularlyto a means for mount ing the refrigerant condensing unit in arefrigerator cabinet. I

One object of the invention is to provide a ApplicationJanuary 10.1939,- Serial to. 250,192

IU- of the machine compartment l2 and upwardlythrough an air duct IT.This arrangement of air ducts aids in silencing the noise of arefrigmounting for a refrigerant condensing unit which minimizes thevibration and noises transmitted from the refrigerator unit to therefrigerator cabinet and to the room in which the unit is op "erated.

'Another object of the invention is to provide a resilient mounting fora refrigerant condensing frigerator embodying the invention with theside walls of the machine compartment of the refrigerator broken away;

erant condensing unit I! located in the machine compartment l2.

The refrigerant condensing unit- It comprises a sealed casing l9 housinga reciprocating com- Fig. 2 is a rear elevation of the refrigerator of iFig. 1 with the lower portion of the air duct and some of the tubingbroken away to show the refrigerating unit; Y

Fig. 3 is a detailelevation of the refrigerant condensing mechanism andthe resilient supports of the mechanism with parts of the mechanismbroken away; v I

Fig. 4 is an enlarged side elevation of the upper .rubber support forthe refrigerant condensing unit;

Fig. 5 is an end'elevation of the support of Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 is an enlarged side elevation of oneof the lower supports for therefrigerant condensing unit; and, a v

Fig. '7 is an end elevation of the support shown in Fig. 6. v

Referring now specifically to the drawingsfor a detail description ofthe invention, the-refer-f ence numeral l0 designates a refrigeratorcabinet countered during shipment.

unit III are secured by screws 39 to a metal cross 1 having a foodstorage compartment H. in the upper portion and a machine compartment l2in the lower portion. The machine compartment l2 g is cooled by an airduct having its entrance in' ment l2 and outwardly through arear openingrator.

pressor 2| and a motor 22 for'driving the same through a horizontaldrive shaft 20. The casing l9 contains lubricating oil (not shown) at alevel slightly below the rotor of the motor 22.. The portion of thecasing l9 housing the motor 22 is provided with U-shaped cooling fins23. A refrigerant condenser 24 is secured to the'fins 23 by means of ashroud25. A fan 28 driven by a motor 21 provides for drawing air throughthe condenser 24 and passing this air'through the U-shaped fins 23.

The various refrigerant ducts are as follows: A suctiontube 23' carriesthe refrigerant vapor from an evaporator (not shown) in the food storagecompartment l l to the interior of the casing IS. A tube 29 carries thecompressed refrigerant from the pump 2| in the casing It to thecondenser 24, and a capillaryimpedancetube 3| carries the liquefiedrefrigerant to the evapo- The tubes 28, 29 and 3| are coiled adjacentthe condensing unit l8 to provide for resiliency. As thus far described,the apparatus is old and in all the essential details is similar totheapparatus shown in Patent No. 2,080,595 issued to W. B. Anderson .eta1. andassigned tothe assignee of the present application.

The condensing unit I3 is supported at the rear of the machinecompartment 12 by two resilient supports 32. The supports 32 are shownin Figs. 6 and 7 and comprises horizontal rubber cylinder '33 vulcanizedat one of its ends to a metal disc 34 having a central screw threadednipple 35 and at its other end to an upper portion of a bracket 31. Thebracket 31 hasa'base 33 formed into a cradle to limit the. movement ofthe rubber cylinder .33 when severe shocks are en- I To form the cradle.the base has end portions bent upwardly at an angle. The rear supports32 of the condensing channel 4| in the lower, rear portion of themachine compartment II. The casing ll of .the motorand compressor isprovided with a formed steel bracket 42-on each side. These brackets 42a secured at its upper end to a somewhat similar resilient support 44.This support 44 is shown in detail in Figs. 4 and 5 and comprises ahorizontal rubber cylinder 45 vulcanized at each end portion of the yoke48 and is heldin place by a washer 49 and a nut 5|. The other stud 51 ofthe support it is secured in a similar manner to the central web 52 of achannel member 53 secured at its upper and lower ends 54 to structuralcross members 55 in the machine compartment it. It will be observed thatthe rubber cylinders 33 and 35 are stressed in shear and sag under theweight of the condensing unit it as shown in Figs. 1 and3. The weightdistribution of the condensing unit it is such that the center of massrepresented by Z in Figs. 2 and 3 lies near but slightly above a planeX, Y passed through the center of the movable ends of the rubbercylinders 33 and 45. In determining this center of mass, the lubricatingoil normally in the unit was removed and the coil of the tubes 28 and 3!adjacent the unit it was cut at its midpoint. The weight distribution ofthe condensing unit it is furthermore such that each of the supports 32and it are substantially equally loaded.

The particular position of the resilient suping, and means for mountingsaid unitary structure in said cabinet comprising a plurality ofsupports having resilient elements near the lower portion of the pumpend of said casing and a further resilient element near theupper'portion of said condenser.

2. In a mechanical refrigerator, the combination of a cabinet, a unitarystructure comprising a refrigerant pump, a motor adjacent said pump, acondenser at one end of said unitary structure,

a casing for said pump and motor, a fan, and a motor for driving thesame, said fan and its driva further resilient element near the upperportion of saidcondenser. t

3. Apparatus according to claim 2 in {which the plurality of resilientelements near the'lower ports 32 and M described produces unusually Iquiet operation of the condensing unit. The rubber in the supportsprovides a relatively resilient cushioning during slight deflections ofthe unit It such as occur during normal operation. The resiliency of therubber decreases rapidly, however, when the limit of its defiectabilityis approached as may occur when the refrigerator is jarred duringshipment. This decreased resiliency near the limits of thedeflectability of the rubber prevents the refrigerant condensing unitfrom striking against the cabinet wall during shipment and makes the useofhold-down bolts or blocking unnecessary. This invention also avoidsthe necessity of opening the machine compartment at the customerspremises to remove the hold-down screws or blocking, which heretoforerequired considerable time and was sometimes forgotten, necessitating aservice call. 1

From the above it will be apparent that this in vention provides amounting for a refrigerant condensing uni-t which minimizes thevibrations and noises transmitted from the condensing unit to therefrigerator cabinet and to the room in which the unit is operated andfurther provides a mounting providing protection against jolts portionof the motor end and the resilient element near the upper portion of.the condenser are each loaded substantially equally.

4. In a mechanical refrigerator, the combination of a cabinet, a unitarystructure comprising a compressor, a motor for driving the compressor,and a casing for enclosing said motor and compressor, a condenserdisposed at one end or said casing, a fan, and a motor for driving thefan, said fan and its driving motor being located between the condenserand the casing, and means for mounting said' unitary structure in saidcabinet comprising resilient supporting means disposed near the lowerportion of said casing opposite the condenser and further resilientsupporting means disposed near the upper portion of said condenser.

which ordinarily would slam the unit against the walls of the cabinet.

While I have shown my invention in but one form, it will be obvious tothose skilled in the art that it is not so limited, but is susceptibleof various changes and modifications without departing from the spiritthereof, and I desire, therefore, that only such limitations shall beplaced thereupon as are imposed by the prior art or as are specificallyset forth in the appended claims.

. What I claim is:

1. In a mechanical refrigerator, the combination of a cabinet, a unitarystructure comprising a refrigerant pump at one end thereof, a motoradjacent said pump for driving the same, a condenser on the other side01 said motor, and 9. casing for said pump and motor, said condenserbeing substantially at the same level with saidcac:

5. In a mechanical refrigerator, the combination of a cabinet, a unitarystructure disposed within the cabinet and comprising a compressor, amotor for driving the compressor and a casing for enclosing said motorand compressor, a condenser disposed substantially in horizontal aline--ment with the casing,-means for attaching the condenser to the casingand means for mounting said unitary structure in said cabinet comprisingresilient supporting means disposed near the lower portion of the end ofthe casing opposite from the condenser and further resilient supportingmeans. disposed near the upper portion of said condenser.

6. Apparatus according to claim 5 in which the resilient supportscomprise rubber-like material mounted to stress said material in shear.

'7. In a mechanical refrigerator, the combinationof a cabinet, a unitarystructure comprising a reciprocating refrigerating pump at one endthereof, a motor adjacent said pump, a condenser at the other end ofsaid unitary structure, a casing for said pump and motor, a fan, and amotor for driving the same, said fan and its driving motor being locatedbetween the condenser and the casing, and means for mounting saidunitary structure in said cabinet comprising a plurality of rubbersupports near the lower portion of the compressor end of said casing anda further rubher support near the upper portion of the condenser.

8. In a mechanical refrigerator, the combination of a cabinet, a unitarystructure comprising a reciprocating refrigerating pump at one end thelower portion of the compressor end of said thereof, a'motor adjacentsaid pump, a condenser casing and a further resilient element near theat the other end of said unitary structure, a, casv upper portion 01 thecondenser; said resilient ing for said pump and motor, and means forelements lying in a plane passing close to the mounting said unitarystructure in said cabinet 5 center 'of mass of said unitary structure.comprising a. plurality of resilient elements near ELLIOTT E. GROVER.

